Great apes deliberately spin around to make themselves dizzy, researchers say.
Such behavior could offer an answer to the question of why people have developed a desire for altered mental states, said a scientist from the University of Warwick.
Also, he added, this increased the possibility that this trait comes from our ancestors.
Scientists studied footage of gorillas, chimpanzees and orangutans spinning in circles to come to this conclusion.
"If this were indeed the case, it would have huge implications for how we think about contemporary human cognitive capacities and emotional needs," said Dr Adriano Lameira, associate professor of psychology at Warwick and one of the scientists who led the study.
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The research team studied a viral video of a male gorilla spinning in a pool and other online footage of monkeys also spinning.
The analysis revealed that the monkeys turned at an average speed of 1,5 revolutions per second.
In many recordings, it is seen that primates use ropes or vines to spin, and it was on these aids that they did it the fastest and longest.
"Spinning alters our state of consciousness, disrupting our body-mind response and coordination, making us feel sick, lucid, and even euphoric as in the case of children playing on carousels and merry-go-rounds," said Dr. Lameira.
He also added that if all great apes tend to get dizzy, then it is very likely that our ancestors did as well.
"We wondered what role these behaviors play in the origins of the human mind."
The primates did it on purpose, as if it were a dance, and the parallel between the behavior of humans and monkeys is more than coincidental, Lameira said.
The monkeys were noticeably dizzy by the third lap, which would probably have caused them to lose their balance and fall.
"This would indicate that primates deliberately continue to turn, despite beginning to feel the effects of vertigo, until they are no longer able to maintain their balance," said Dr Marcus Perlman of the University of Birmingham, one of the scientists who led the study. .
Further research is needed to understand the primates' motivation for such behavior.
"There could also be a connection with mental health, as the primates who behaved like this were mostly captive individuals, so maybe they were bored and trying to stimulate their own senses in some way," said Dr Lameira, adding that it would also could be "behaviour during play".
The research was published in the journal Primates (Primates).
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